Robigalia Roundup #4

Hello Robigalia Reader and welcome back to another week of Robigalia, delivering the latest research, tools, and opportunities in plant pathology.

This week, we learn about an important but understudied pathogen of wheat and a workplace tool for research project management. Then we have several new post-doc opportunities available to ECRs! As always, Robigalia subscribers can access my online database with summaries of Robigalia featured articles.

Keep reading for the latest updates!

Plant pathology research

An array of Zymoseptoria tritici effectors suppress plant immune responses

Zymoseptoria tritici is a major fungal pathogen of wheat that causes Septoria tritici blotch disease. This pathogen has an unusual infection strategy with an extended symptomless phase lasting up to 2 weeks before transitioning to necrotrophy. During infection, Z. tritici must evade or suppress host immune responses, but the molecular mechanisms involved are not well understood.

This study published in early October aimed to identify and characterise Z. tritici effector proteins that can suppress plant immune responses by establishing a high-throughput screening system to test multiple candidate effectors for their ability to interfere with plant defence pathways. Using Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression to candidate effectors in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves, they tested for suppression of immune responses finding multiple Z. tritici effectors supressed PAMP-triggered immunity with different effectors showing varying specificity in suppressing responses to different PAMPs. They also found some effectors could suppress cell death responses induced by other Z. tritici proteins.

The findings suggest that similar to biotrophic pathogens, Z. tritici relies on a diverse arsenal of secreted effectors to manipulate host immunity during early colonisation stages and provides new insights into the molecular strategies used by this important wheat pathogen to establish infection.

Research tools you’re loving

Notion

Notion, while not a traditional research tool, is a versatile workspace that offers a centralised hub for organising research notes, experimental data, and project timelines, making it invaluable throughout the research journey. Its customisable databases allow for efficient management of information specific to your field. The project management features, including Kanban boards, Gantt charts, and to-do lists, help track research progress and manage tasks, deadlines, and milestones.

Notion integrates with various software tools, allowing you to embed data visualisation tools, reference management software like Zotero, or custom code blocks for data analysis. With robust collaboration features, Notion facilitates team coordination and streamlines research workflows, ultimately enhancing productivity.

Research student of the week

COMING SOON!

Fill out the EOI to have your research featured in Robigalia

PhD Scholarships and Jobs

PhD Scholarships

• Plant genetics, breeding, ecology or evolution at SLU within the Rubin Lab

• Be sure to regularly check out the CSIRO Industry PhD Program website which includes all of the current PhD Scholarship opportunities in Australia

Jobs

• Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Plant Virology & Vector Biology at Macquarie University

• Post-doc opportunity in Quantitative Disease Resistance. Use high-throughput phenotyping & transcriptomics to find QDR regulators in quinoa

• Technical assistant role in the Biocontrol Facility to work with insect colonies

• Apply for a Research Scientist role in Applied Entomology & Integrated Pest Management, Mildura, AUS

• Hort Innovation are on the lookout for a Research and Development Manager based in Sydney, AUS

Other News and Opportunities

• Save the date for the Congress of the Mediterranean Phytopathological Union happening July 6 - 10th in Italy

• Registrations are still open for the Australasian Plant Virology Workshop, happening 29th -31st October in the Gold Coast

• Register your interest for the 17th Australasian Plant Breeding Conference in Sydney in June 2025

• Save the date for the 25th Australasian Plant Pathology Society conference in Sydney in May 2025

• Nominations are now open for the 2025 Jeanie Borlaug Laube Women in Triticum (WIT) awards. Nominations close November 29th 2024.

Meme of the week

Before you go…

• Like or didn’t like this new newsletter format? Let me know if the comments!

• Think a friend (or two) could benefit from reading? I’d love it if you could share this link with them.

Until next week,

Alyssa